Chapter109

On her desk sits a stack of papers. Copies of her passport, her new contract, insurance documents, her new address in Milan. She checks them more than once, afraid she might forget something. Everything is ready.

On the last evening, Amanda opens the balcony door. The city air drifts in, carrying the faint sound of traffic and a smell of late summer dust. Lights from other buildings shine against the sky, scattered like watchful eyes. She leans on the railing and looks down at the street. The scene is ordinary, yet to her it feels distant already, like a memory she is still standing inside.

Her mind drifts. She remembers coming home late from the office, her heels clicking on the floor of her apartment, the silence pressing close around her. She remembers setting down her bag, making tea alone, waiting for a man who rarely came. Riley’s face passes through her thoughts like a reflection in water. And then it vanishes like a bubble, lea